Carlos Alcaraz among top stars distancing from Novak Djokovic-led PTPA lawsuit prompts Jim Courier to label situation 'complicated' & 'murky'

Four-time Grand Slam champion Jim Courier gave his thoughts on Carlos Alcaraz and several other top tennis stars distancing themselves from the Novak Djokovic-led PTPA lawsuit. He deemed this situation to be "complicated" and "murky."

On March 18, the PTPA filed a lawsuit against tennis governing bodies - the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), Women's Tennis Association (WTA), International Tennis Federation (ITF), and the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA). The lawsuit highlighted various grievances that players have against governing bodies.

However, since the lawsuits have been filed, many top tennis players like Carlos Alcaraz, Jessica Pegula, and Madison Keys, among others, were asked if they were aware of it, and they all denied any association with it.

While speaking on 'Questions for Cancer,' Courier was asked if he knew the names of the players associated with the lawsuit filed by the PTPA. In response, the former World No. 1 stated that he did not know the names of the players and even suggested that the PTPA, as an organization itself, might not know which players are part of it, as there was no formal membership process.

"No, they don't say and there's not really a way to join the PTPA. They don't have a "membership" if you will. Anyone who likes the PTPA as a player and wants their support, they can go to them... but there's no membership fee. So there's really no way to know who's actually in there, for even them, for even the PTPA there's no way for them to know," Courier said.

Courier noted that what was most surprising was that after filing a "charged" and "high-powered lawsuit," many players revealed that they were not "consulted" about it.

"What's been a little bit interesting after they've filed a very charged and high-powered lawsuit in the last 10 days or so is that you have a lot of the top players telling when asked by the media that they didn't know anything about it. They weren't consulted," he continued.

Jim Courier pointed out that the PTPA filed the lawsuit on behalf of the players, yet the players are distancing themselves from it. The former World No. 1 described the situation as "complicated" and "very murky."

"They may really want the lawsuit to go forward and support it but they may want to be protecting relationships with people within tennis that are on the other side of that lawsuit. So it's complicated and it's also at this stage very murky," Jim Courier added.

In addition to Carlos Alcaraz, Jessica Pegula, and Madison Keys, players such as Zheng Qinwen and Belinda Bencic have also denied any association with the Novak Djokovic-led PTPA lawsuit.

---

What did Carlos Alcaraz say about the Novak Djokovic-led PTPA lawsuit?

Carlos Alcaraz pictured speaking at a press conference [Image Source: Getty Images]

Last month, while speaking at a press conference, Carlos Alcaraz admitted that he was unaware of the Novak Djokovic-led PTPA lawsuit and that he came to know about it on social media.

"Honestly, it was surprising for me, because nobody told me (anything) about it. So I just saw it on social media that there were statements...like they put something that I said in a press conference which I didn't know," Carlos Alcaraz said.

Alcaraz shared that while there were aspects of the legal document that he could agree with, there were also parts that he disagreed with. Nevertheless, he made it clear that he was "not supporting" the lawsuit in any way.

"There are some things that I agree (with). There are some other things that I (don’t) agree with. But the main thing here is that I am not supporting that. So that’s it," Alcaraz added.

Carlos Alcaraz is in Monaco competing at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters. He won against Francisco Cerundolo in the second round and will next face Daniel Altmaier in the third round.